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Method and apparatus for an audio-linked remote indicator for a wireless communication device

Method and apparatus for an audio-linked remote indicator for a wireless communication device description/claims

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1. Field of the Invention

This invention relates to wireless communications devices. More particularly, it relates to remote indicators for alerting a user to an incoming call, message, or the like.

2. Description of the Related Art

Wireless communications devices are now in common use throughout the inhabited portions of the world. Perhaps the most common such devices are cellular telephones and pagers. As the physical size of these devices has decreased, their use has become more personal and the device is often carried on the person. For example, mobile telephones were at first confined largely to vehicles. However, reductions in their size and power requirements have permitted them to fit in a pocket, purse or belt holster.

It is not always convenient, however, to carry a mobile communications device on the person. A user's attire may not have a pocket or belt upon which a device (or its holder) may be clipped. For aesthetic reasons, some users prefer not to have a bulky item like a cellular phone in their pocket or clipped to their belt. As a result, cell phones, pagers and the like are often carried in a purse, attache case, bag or the like. The acoustic insulation provided by such a container in combination with a possible lack of proximity to the user can result in a call or message notification (e.g., phone ringing; pager beeping) being missed by the user. What is needed is a smaller, less obtrusive indicator of an incoming call or message that can be worn on the person or attached to the outside of a purse or bag holding the phone or pager.

Some devices of the prior art have addressed this problem by providing a radio-linked remote indicator that establishes a network connection with a mobile phone. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 7,016,707 to Fujisawa et al. describes a system wherein a mobile telephone and a radio communication device cooperatively process an incoming call. In that system, when there is an incoming call to a mobile telephone, it sends an incoming call notification signal to a watch-shaped information processing device. When the watch-shaped information processing device receives the incoming call notification signal, it notifies its user of the incoming call. The watch-shaped information processing device can also sends user's instructions to the mobile telephone. The instructions cause the mobile telephone to conduct processing for an incoming call such as processing for asking the caller to wait, or asking the caller to leave a message. Such systems typically employ a two-way, radio-frequency link between the mobile telephone and the remote device. This often means that the mobile telephone must be equipped with a [separate] radio transmitter and receiver dedicated to this function—i.e., a phone pre-configured and equipped for use with a remote device.

A remote device “listens” for an audio signal emanating from a mobile communications device and activates a visual, audio or tactile indicator to alert the user of an incoming call, missed call, page, text message, voice mail, or the like.

In one particular preferred embodiment, a remote indicator responds to the audio reception of a unique ring tone emitted by a mobile phone. The response may be a flashing light on the exterior of the device. Different signals may be used to indicate different incoming calls. For example, a light of a unique color may be illuminated if the call is from a certain number or is a member of a set of known numbers—i.e., from someone known to the user.

In some embodiments, the indicator is in a separate module that is linked to the ring detector via a radio-frequency receiver or transceiver. In such embodiments, the ring detector may be kept in physical proximity to the phone being monitored—e.g., in a purse—while the rf-linked indicator is worn or carried by the user who may be some distance away from the phone.

FIG. 1 illustrates a user modeling various fashion accessories containing a device according to one embodiment of the invention. In the illustration, the user is carrying a handbag containing a mobile communications device having audio signaling capability.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of the user's hand with a ring according to one embodiment of the invention being worn thereon.

FIG. 3 illustrates how four different fashion accessories—a necklace, a brooch, a ring and a bracelet—may function as housing embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 4 shows a two-piece embodiment of the invention which employs a radio-frequency link to a remote indicator housed within a fashion accessory.

• Provisional Patent
• Utility Patent

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